bonzo wrote:Thinking about lasting tributes... What about replacing Ireland's Call with There Is An Isle as the Irish rugby anthem?

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No, its not a good idea at all. Anthony Foley isn't the first legend of Irish Rugby to die, and sadly he won't be the last - are we to replace the rugby anthem every time one passes? People have a natural desire to try to memorialise a figure such as Foley, but reality has to intrude.

Having said that, imagine a great irish player emerges from UL Bohs, then passes, then we change the rugby anthem to suit - 50,000 people singing 'when the red red robin goes bob bob bobbing along'

bonzo wrote:Thinking about lasting tributes... What about replacing Ireland's Call with There Is An Isle as the Irish rugby anthem?

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No, its not a good idea at all. Anthony Foley isn't the first legend of Irish Rugby to die, and sadly he won't be the last - are we to replace the rugby anthem every time one passes? People have a natural desire to try to memorialise a figure such as Foley, but reality has to intrude.

Having said that, imagine a great irish player emerges from UL Bohs, then passes, then we change the rugby anthem to suit - 50,000 people singing 'when the red red robin goes bob bob bobbing along'

It'd be nice to have a song that means something though anyway that's for another thread.

I don't know how but I hope Munster stuff Glasgow today in a cracking game in front of a full house and go on to have their best season since 2008, now that'd be a fitting tribute.

We slagged Foley a lot on here because he was a legend the type of guy you love to have on your team and hate to have against you.

Thoughts and best wishes to his family and the whole Munster family as well.

As Munster are one of the four provinces and aren't playing Leinster but rather foreign opposition, I certainly hope they win too. At the same time though I think the winning or losing of this match today is less important than both teams giving everything, leaving nothing out there and the whole occasion being a joyous if poignant celebration of Foley and his community. To contradict Vince Lombardi, winning is neither everything, nor the only thing, but in the greater scheme of things an irrelevance. It's what you give, not what you get, that matters.

bonzo wrote:Thinking about lasting tributes... What about replacing Ireland's Call with There Is An Isle as the Irish rugby anthem?

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No, its not a good idea at all. Anthony Foley isn't the first legend of Irish Rugby to die, and sadly he won't be the last - are we to replace the rugby anthem every time one passes? People have a natural desire to try to memorialise a figure such as Foley, but reality has to intrude.

Having said that, imagine a great irish player emerges from UL Bohs, then passes, then we change the rugby anthem to suit - 50,000 people singing 'when the red red robin goes bob bob bobbing along'

That Anthony Foley won't be the last legend to die suddenly is certainly correct. But the point is rather that "There is an Isle" is a good song, with a genuine rugby pedigree- that can be sung without embarrassment or provincial partiality. To my mind "Ireland's Call" cannot meet the standards of anything except, maybe, being impartial.

I haven't a notion of the words to that and I suspect most people of my generation would be the same, can't imagine how it could possibly catch on. Although I also don't have a problem with Ireland's call, it's been there as long as I've been watching Ireland and have heard some amazing renditions.

Anyway, this thread is about Foley and today was incredible from everyone involved in it.

LeRouxIsPHat wrote:I haven't a notion of the words to that and I suspect most people of my generation would be the same, can't imagine how it could possibly catch on. Although I also don't have a problem with Ireland's call, it's been there as long as I've been watching Ireland and have heard some amazing renditions.

Anyway, this thread is about Foley and today was incredible from everyone involved in it.

Yes, of course it's about Foley, we're discussing if the adoption of a well known and loved song associated with his club as our rugby anthem might be both an appropriate commemoration and a better Ireland "rugby anthem" than the dirge we currently have. Don't know the words? A simple web search would locate them, but to save you the trouble here they are:

There is an isle, a bonnie Isle,Stands proudly from,stands proudly from the seaAnd dearer far than all this worldIs that dear Isle, is that dear Isle to me.

It is not that alone it standsWhere all around is fresh and fair,But because it is my native land,And my home, my home is there.But because it is my native land,And my home, my home is there. Farewell, farewell, though lands may meet,May meet my gaze,My gaze where’er I roam.I shall not find a spot so fairAs that dear Isle, as that dear isle to me.

It is not that alone it standsWhere all around is fresh and fair,But because it is my native land,And my home, my home is there.But because it is my native land,And my home, my home is there.

I'm not sure if it's the greatest song ever composed but it's more genuinely resonant of the tradition of Anthony Foley, Jack Kyle, Karl Mullen and all the rugby greats past, present and future than Phil Coulter's knock off.

LeRouxIsPHat wrote:I haven't a notion of the words to that and I suspect most people of my generation would be the same, can't imagine how it could possibly catch on. Although I also don't have a problem with Ireland's call, it's been there as long as I've been watching Ireland and have heard some amazing renditions.

Anyway, this thread is about Foley and today was incredible from everyone involved in it.

Yes, of course it's about Foley, we're discussing if the adoption of a well known and loved song associated with his club as our rugby anthem might be both an appropriate commemoration and a better Ireland "rugby anthem" than the dirge we currently have. Don't know the words? A simple web search would locate them, but to save you the trouble here they are:

There is an isle, a bonnie Isle,Stands proudly from,stands proudly from the seaAnd dearer far than all this worldIs that dear Isle, is that dear Isle to me.

It is not that alone it standsWhere all around is fresh and fair,But because it is my native land,And my home, my home is there.But because it is my native land,And my home, my home is there. Farewell, farewell, though lands may meet,May meet my gaze,My gaze where’er I roam.I shall not find a spot so fairAs that dear Isle, as that dear isle to me.

It is not that alone it standsWhere all around is fresh and fair,But because it is my native land,And my home, my home is there.But because it is my native land,And my home, my home is there.

I'm not sure if it's the greatest song ever composed but it's more genuinely resonant of the tradition of Anthony Foley, Jack Kyle, Karl Mullen and all the rugby greats past, present and future than Phil Coulter's knock off.

bonzo wrote:Thinking about lasting tributes... What about replacing Ireland's Call with There Is An Isle as the Irish rugby anthem?

Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk

No, its not a good idea at all. Anthony Foley isn't the first legend of Irish Rugby to die, and sadly he won't be the last - are we to replace the rugby anthem every time one passes? People have a natural desire to try to memorialise a figure such as Foley, but reality has to intrude.

Having said that, imagine a great irish player emerges from UL Bohs, then passes, then we change the rugby anthem to suit - 50,000 people singing 'when the red red robin goes bob bob bobbing along'

That Anthony Foley won't be the last legend to die suddenly is certainly correct. But the point is rather that "There is an Isle" is a good song, with a genuine rugby pedigree- that can be sung without embarrassment or provincial partiality. To my mind "Ireland's Call" cannot meet the standards of anything except, maybe, being impartial.

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I don't think it can, there's like 2 diff voices required to sing it. You need someone to lead etc.

LeRouxIsPHat wrote:You missed the point. It's not a song that's well known to younger generations, at least not those from Munster. So it would be next to impossible for it to catch on.

And yet "Ireland's Call" was introduced from nowhere and we sung the crappy lyrics with embarrassed gusto because it was all we had to unite us! You don't think that fans are capable of adopting a song with real relevance and history if the context and tradition- passed great, etc. Is explained? Don't buy that.

Give over. Nobody outside of limerick and under the age of 40 had heard of it until this week.

So what! When did you hear Ireland's Call first- and did your heart jump with joy. Jaysus- the idea that an anthem has to be instantly familiar or to feature on the equivalent of the X Factor to appeal to the yoof, is just rubbish. Stop this tiresome ageism line.

If it's a good song it will be adopted. In fact the case of Ireland's Call proves that even if it's a shite song, we are so desperate for a unifying anthem that we will accept it!

You might not like Ireland's Call, but I've talked with ex internationals and they like belting it out. It's an inclusive song in what is an inclusive sport. If you're embarrassed to belt it out, either live with it or don't sing it.

Now if there is Ann isle is chanted at the next international I'm lucky enough to attend, I'll give it a lash, but it's not an anthem, nor is a good song. It's poignant right now and belongs to Limerick in and Munster rugby.

Well that's a more legitimate judgement and argument against it than some offered. Personally I think it is good - and certainly better than both Ireland's Call or Amhran na Bhfiann, but to each his own. It's all relative really.

Fan with smartphone wrote:Feel like I have to write something on here before being able to look at a game again. Foley represented the best of munster and while he could handle that limelight, he never hogged it. He gave as much and looked as comfortable whether he was wearing the Shannon jersey or the Ireland one and he was Mick Galwey's successor as Munster's godfather. Peter Stringer described him as his "protector." It made me think of when there was a great moment last week where Joey Carberry came slaloming through with big sidesteps and Mike Ross was following sidestep for sidestep, ready to clear out and look after him. He wore an expression of an exasperated parent desperately trying to keep an eye on his kids, whilst letting them have some fun. It reminded me hugely of Foley. He did so much of that to allow others to shine, but when it needed someone to control the ball over the line, he was as reliable as you could get. You couldn't get a more quintessential munster homebird and yet he was known worldwide. This week has shown that. To lose such a hard and fair and decent man is beyond brutal. Grief is total and for all the good he brought to be thankful for, all that can be seen at the moment is the good that has been lost. Condolences to his beautiful family and his friends and good luck to munster as they try to do justice to the goodness that he brought to them.